The Countdown Continues... with 'The 12 Famous Artists of Christmas'

Famous Artist #8: Ben Stahl





Famous Artist #9: Fred Ludekens



Famous Artist #10: Stevan Dohanos



Famous Artist #11: Peter Helck



* Thanks to Flickr member vintageillu for providing the Peter Helck scan above!

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The Countdown Continues... with 'The 12 Famous Artists of Christmas'

Famous Artist #7: Norman Rockwell





* Here's a curiosity: an unknown artist (the signature appears to be cropped off - could it be Walter Richards?) paints Norman Rockwell painting Santa Claus for a 1949 Hallmark Cards ad. The text below the illustration reads, "Norman Rockwell is one of many famous artists who have painted Hallmark Christmas cards for you."



* A special show celebrating the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens’ birth and featuring original Rockwell artworks inspired by the literary giant’s contributions is on right now at the Norman Rockwell Museum!

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The Countdown Continues... with 'The 12 Famous Artists of Christmas'

Famous Artist #5: Austin Briggs



Famous Artist #6: George Giusti



* Many thanks to Sandi Vincent, who provided the Giusti scan above.

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The Countdown Continues... with 'The 12 Famous Artists of Christmas'

Famous Artist #3: Harold VonSchmidt



Famous Artist #4: Robert Fawcett

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The Countdown Continues... with 'The 12 Famous Artists of Christmas'

Number 1: Albert Dorne



Number 2: Jon Whitcomb

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The Countdown to Christmas Continues... with Some Helpful Advice for Couples

Let's face it, ladies; men are dopes.

Remember that lazy Sunday afternoon in September... you were flipping through a fashion magazine and casually mentioned how much you'd love one of those gorgeous angora sweaters for Christmas? Well, when we responded "uh-huh", we weren't actually filing that piece of information in our mental rolodex. In the universal vernacular of the male of the species, "Uh-huh" is our way of pretending we're listening to you while...

- we're reading the paper

- the big game's on tv

- we're trying to sleep

- other (pick one)

So when Christmas finally rolls around, it should come as no surprise that we haven't got a clue what you'd like. And asking you is out of the question, because that would mean admitting we "don't listen to a word you say."

This is why men are so susceptible to whatever suggestion advertisers decide to drop into our pointy little heads - especially at Christmas time. A guy sees an ad like this one below...



... and fails to realize the expression on this lady's face isn't one of sheer ecstasy - its one of sheer incredulity. "Oh my god, this idiot actually bought me a vacuum cleaner... for Christmas!"



You know, divorce rates in the US began to climb dramatically after the early '60s. I suspect it was all those post-WWII marriages that were suddenly becoming unglued. Whatever their number, I bet you could blame Madison Avenue for at least half of those divorces.



Because after a decade or two of patiently putting up with cast iron cooking pot Christmas gifts...



... who could blame any woman for throwing "Mr. Thoughtful" and his smarmy, self-satisfied wink out on his keister? (And he probably had to duck on the way to avoid getting beaned by that pot!)

In the interest of hopefully saving a few relationships, lets look at - and learn from - the mistakes of the past. Here's a little advice to the guys out there...



No she won't.



There are actually more than four ways to please any woman - none of them involve giving her a coffeemaker.



Oh god, do not give your wife windshield wipers for Christmas!



Seriously? A long pointy knife? All I can say is, learn to sleep with your eyes open, buddy.

And ladies, as mentioned at the top, men are simpletons. Subsequently they have simple tastes - which makes your Christmas shopping a breeze. Most guys will be more than happy if you'll just provide them with the following:

beer...



boxers...



and...



... a new razor, of course!



Why? What did you think I was going to say?

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The Countdown to Christmas Continues... with another "Oddball Ad Campaign" of the 1940s!

So how do we top last week's 'Sexy Santa' and 'Smokin' Santa'?



Why, with 'Suicide Santa', of course!



You've got to hand it to the boys on Madison Avenue who convinced Arrow Shirts to run an ad campaign depicting dear old Saint Nick with his big toe on the trigger at the moment before he blows his own head off.



I can't help but wonder if the agency might not have originally presented a layout where Santa actually had a gun in his mouth - then "cooler heads prevailed" and they switch the rifle for a comical old blunderbuss.

It turns out that when Santa warned the kid in "A Christmas Story" that "You'll shoot your eye out!" he was speaking from experience!



* My Mid-Century Xmas Flickr set

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